Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1887-07-09
ssroat Results Hang or.s4apparontIa slon-=
der Circn,nstances-Ths Casual. the
Accidental Are Parts os Great f,isirs
An Island Between Two Eternities.


der CircnInsts.nces-Ths Casual, the
Accidental Are Parts oS Grsat Pirs,r.
An Island Between Two Eternities.
MARTHA's VINEYARD, Mass, July s.
Many hundreds of Brooklyn Tabernacle
people and their friends have made pill
grimaee to this place. 1t is ono point i'll
nm excursion of six lai's, taking in New
port, Nantucket and this island. The
Rev T. Dewitt Talmage, DID,, preached
hre this morning in the great calnp meet
ing tabernacle. Thousands of people were
present from all parts Of New England.
The music was conducted by band
DR. Talnage's text was: Through u
window in a basement was l let down by
the wall Ill Cor ri, So He s;,id
Sermons on Paul in Jail, Paul on Mars
Hill, Paul in the shipwreck, Paul before
the Sanhedrin, Paul before Felix are
plentiful, but in my text we have Paul i'll
u basket. Damascus is a city OF white
yttffstcTpng architecture, sometimes
called "the eye of the East" sometimes
called "a pearl surrounded by emeralds, !"
at one time distinguished for swords Of
the best material called Damascus blades,
and upholstery of richest fabric called
damasks. A horseman by the name of
Saul, riding towards this city, had been
thrown from the saddle. The horse had
dropped under flash from the sky, which
at the same time was so bright it blinded
the rider for many days, and, think, so
permanently injured his eyesieht that this
defect of vision became the thorn in the
flesh he afterward speaks of. He started
for Damascus to butcher Christians, but
after that hard fall from his horse he was
O changed man and preached Christ in
Damascus till the city was shaken to its
foundation.
The mayor gives authority for his ar
rest, and the popular cryis "Kill him! kill
hilni' The city is surrounded by u high
wall and the gates IRE watched by the
police lest the Cicilian preacher escape.
Many of the houses are built on the wall,
and their balconies projected clear over
and lowered above the gardens outside.
1t was customary to lower baskets out of
these balconies and pull up fruits and
flowers from the gardens. 10 this day
visitors ct the monastery ct Mount Sinai
are lifted and let down in baskets. De-
tectives prowled around from house to
house looking for Paul, but his friends hit
him, now in one place, now in another.
He is no coward, US fifty incidents in his
life demonstrates. But he feels his work
is not done yet, and so he evades assassi
nation. ''Is that pre,tcher here?" the
foaming mob shout at one house door. 'Is
that fanatic here?' the police shout at an
other house door. Sometimes on the street
incognito he passes through crowd of
clenched fists and sometimes he secretes
himself on the housetops. At last the in
furiatel populace get on sure track of
him. They have positive evidence that he
is in the house of one Of the Christians,
the balcony of whose home reaches over
the wall. "Here he is! Here he isnp The
yociferation and blasphemy and bowling.
of the pursuers are at the front door.
2 They bseak in. HFetch out that gospel
i9er. aid let uss4-.ss
gate. Where is heF' The emergency Was
terrible Providentially there was good
stout basket in the house. Paul's friends
Hasten rope to the basket. Paul steps
into it. The basket is lifted to the edge
of the balcony on the wall, and then while
Paul holds on to the rope with both hands
his friends lower away, carefully and eau
tiously, slowly but surely, further down
and further down, until the basket strikes
the earth and the apostle steps out and
afoot, and alone starts on that famous
missionary tour, the story of which has
astonished earth and heaven. Appropri-
ate entry in Pauls diary of travels:
s'Througha window In q basket was I let
down by the wall. I"